All USC system campuses share the same application system. Because system campuses do not require an enrollment deposit, you are automatically activated in the system under the first campus to which you were admitted.

To access the Columbia campus portal, Columbia must be your active campus. If you have been admitted to another USC system campus, you must first cancel your enrollment at that campus.

If you applied for summer or fall 2026 freshman admission to more than one USC campus, you must cancel your application(s) to the other campus(es) before you can apply for on-campus housing and register for New Student Orientation at USC Columbia.

Once you are admitted to the Honors College we will automatically place you in the Honors Community.  You will then need to match with students within the Honors Community.

All first-year students are guaranteed on-campus housing, regardless of when they complete the housing application.

For students who already have a roommate group, housing priority is based on the earliest application date within the group. For example, if your roommate completes the housing application when it opens on January 15 and you apply later, your group’s priority date will be based on your roommate’s earlier application date.

This allows you to wait for your financial aid offer without losing housing priority within your roommate group.

• Individual students or roommate pairs not in a Living–Learning Community (LLC) will self-select their room in early June.
• Roommate groups of four not in an LLC will indicate housing preferences during the roommate matching process beginning March 13.
• Living–Learning Community (LLC) students will be notified of their assigned residence hall upon acceptance and will be automatically assigned a room in late May.

Yes. The University of South Carolina requires all new first-year students to live on campus. Students with special circumstances may request an exemption by contacting the Housing office or by visiting the housing portal for additional details.

Yes. The housing application becomes available 48–72 hours after your enrollment deposit has been paid.

Notify the Housing Office and cancel your housing contract by May 1, 2026 to avoid any additional fees. For more information, please review the Housing Cancellation Policy.

Yes. All students must complete the housing application and participate in the roommate matching process, even if they already have a roommate.

Yes. All sections of the housing application, including the roommate matching portion, must be completed—even if you already have a roommate.

After the student submits the housing application, they will provide a parent or guardian’s email address. The designated guardian will then receive an email with instructions to complete the housing proxy agreement.

Private rooms are extremely limited, as most residence halls do not offer them. Some apartment-style housing options (with the exception of Bates West) include private bedrooms, but shared living and kitchen spaces.

Yes. All first-year students are guaranteed on-campus housing at Carolina. To ensure access to the full range of room selection options, be sure to submit your housing application by May 5, 2026.

To participate in room self-selection, you must submit your housing application by May 5, 2026. While all first-year students are guaranteed on-campus housing, applications submitted after this date will have fewer room options available and will be automatically assigned.

University Housing publishes current residence hall rates online for students and parents to review. Rates for the upcoming academic year are typically posted in late spring.

Yes. Housing costs may be covered by scholarships and financial aid. However, this does not apply to the housing application fee unless you have been approved for a fee deferral.

No, the housing application fee must be paid during the application process.

No. The housing application fee is nonrefundable.

No, you should simply select the community you are interested in during the housing application process.

No. Both students must be accepted into the same learning community in order to be roommates.

You may select one to four learning communities when completing the housing application.

Students who apply by March 13, 2026 will receive their decision on that date. Afterward, acceptances will be released on a rolling basis, with weekly notifications continuing through May 18, 2026.

You can update your selection at any time by logging into the housing portal and clicking the LLC option in the top navigation menu.

Yes. Typically all first-year Honors students live in the Honors Residence Hall.

No. While a limited number of Honors housing spaces are available for returning students each year, continued Honors housing is not guaranteed beyond the first year.

Honors residence halls are typically filled by Honors College students. As a result, space is usually not available for non-Honors students.

Yes. Honors students may choose to roommate match with other Honors students. Both students must mutually agree and link together during the roommate matching process, which opens on March 13.

Students living in a Living–Learning Community (LLC) or Honors housing are automatically assigned a room and will receive their housing placement in late May.

Single rooms in the Honors residence hall are very limited. All housing assignments within the Honors community are automatically assigned, so individual room requests cannot be guaranteed.